


the train to your heart

by sunkis



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, Donghyuck is whipped, Fluff and Angst, I'm Bad At Titles, M/M, Mark is whipped, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Tags Are Hard, happy ending def! cant stand seeing characters sad, hm i havent finished this so i dont really know where this is gonna go sdkjfls, honestly idk how to tag lmao, i am a sucker for slow burn fics so this is what yall will be getting, imma add tags as i go along..?, norenmin are being norenmin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2019-11-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:14:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21557599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunkis/pseuds/sunkis
Summary: "have you been avoiding me?""no, why would you say that?""you stopped taking this train. for two weeks.""maybe i don't take this train regularly.""...you literally have to get to college every day, mark." donghyuck deadpans whilst rolling his eyes."points have been made."or,an alternate universe where donghyuck and mark meet on their daily train to college.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin, Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Kudos: 18





	the train to your heart

**Author's Note:**

> hello, everyone! this is my first fic on ao3 woo and hopefully it doesn't flop! i initially planned to only publish this when i finished writing it but i thought it might be better to turn it into a chaptered fic after seeing how long it's getting? so why not publish the first chapter first as motivation to keep on writing this fic and not give up amiright? i honestly have not planned the number of chapters i'm going to write but i'm estimating about 10 to 15k words for this one? yikes but hopefully i still am motivated to finish this because there's so much other stuff i want to write for you guys! anyways, i hope y'all enjoy this one :))
> 
> p.s. most of this is unbetaed because i am lazy™ so hopefully there aren't that many mistakes

"the train service to station xx will arrive in 2 minutes."

the hustle and bustle of commuters in the subway on a typical weekday was something donghyuck was used to by now. people regardless of age milled onto the platform of the underground train service in a hurry to board their train. donghyuck had found the cacophony of people's voices mixed with the blaring subway announcements of the overcrowded subway stations in seoul to be overwhelming at first. he did spend most of his childhood growing up in the peaceful island of jeju, after all. however, almost everything in the busy capital was fast-paced. move too slowly, and you'd be left behind. he’d lived in seoul for three years now; this wasn’t new to him.

he thought back to the first time he arrived in seoul; young, afraid, lost. he had come alone, without anyone to guide him in the huge capital city. he had been living with his aunt and uncle in jeju before this, as his parents passed away when he was merely 9 years old. as his only legal family left, his aunt and uncle were forced to be his guardians until he was of age. granted, they did only the bare minimum as his “guardians”. he did have his own freedom and could go out whenever he liked without the restrictions of a curfew, but that was only because they didn’t care about him. they had never wanted children and only saw donghyuck as a financial burden. losing his parents at such a young age paired with uncaring foster parents resulted in donghyuck going through his teenage years without any emotional support from a parental figure, which was crucial at that stage of his life. he didn't have many friends from school either, a few acquaintances from his classes but no one he could really consider a friend.

since he didn't have friends to hang out with or any relationships to maintain, he mainly focused his time on studying. he was the top student in his level throughout his high school years, which earned him a scholarship to one of the most prestigious colleges in the country. when his foster parents found out, they were elated. not for donghyuck, but because they could finally, finally, get rid of their burdensome foster son and send him off to college. since the scholarship covered all his expenses, they did not have to pay a single cent for tuition. although the scholarship didn’t cover expenses for staying at the dorms within the campus, his foster parents had found a cheap studio apartment with 2 bedrooms to rent for him. it was cheaper than paying for him to stay in the college dormitories. he would be sharing the cost of it with a roommate who also went to the same college.

donghyuck sometimes wondered if he’d make any friends in seoul. he didn’t have any friends at home (if he could call it his home) so he didn't think his chances of finding good friends were high.

his foster parents merely dropped him off at the airport, said rushed goodbyes and left without another word. donghyuck didn’t really care what they did after that; they didn't treat him well enough for him to care for them. when he arrived in seoul, he managed to hail a taxi with the little money he had saved up and brought with him. he arrived at the apartment within 20 minutes. it was a nice place, albeit a little small, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. after the landlord introduced himself (“what was his name again? kun?”), explained the terms of the rent (donghyuck wasn't really paying attention but after the exhausting flight you can't really blame him) and left him to his own devices, donghyuck realised how quiet the place was. he wondered if his roommate was home (“of course he isn't home he’d have come out to greet you by now,” donghyuck thought.) and thought that maybe it wouldn't hurt to have a look around.

he quickly identified the kitchen and the shared bathroom. the kitchen didn’t look like it had been used much, but the fridge was stocked with groceries. donghyuck guessed he didn’t have to worry much about food if his roommate could cook. he could cook but he never really got the chance as his aunt almost never let him into her kitchen; the only time he cooked for himself was when they went on their annual vacations and left donghyuck at home. the bathroom was squeaky clean and he wondered if his roommate had known he was coming that day, or if it was like this all the time. down the hallway, he saw two doors opposite each other which he assumed were his and his roommate’s bedrooms.

he tentatively opened the door on the left and slowly pushed it open. there was no one inside, but there was definitely someone staying in this room. the desk was strewn with art supplies, used sketchbooks filled with half-finished drawings and opened paint tubes left lying in the open. a messenger bag filled with even more sketchbooks and stationery was hanging haphazardly on the back of the desk chair. he noticed the sheets on the bed were moomin-themed, a character he remembered faintly from his childhood. he found himself smiling slightly at the thought of his roommate liking such as a cute character. he moved to the desk to examine the mess on it further. on one sketchbook, he found pages upon pages of beautiful abstract paintings. he marvelled at the beauty of the paintings. his art wasn't half bad, but he could never do something as good as this.

his curiosity piqued, he opened an identical sketchbook next to it, expecting even more jaw-dropping artworks, but he nearly let out a gasp in surprise. the sketchbook was, in fact, filled with drawings of none other than moomin. sketches, full paintings, you name it. it was as if the whole sketchbook were dedicated to the character. he was too engrossed in flipping through the pages of the sketchbook to hear the sound of the front door opening and closing softly. he didn't hear the sound of light footsteps approaching the room either. just as he was looking at a particularly cute sketch, a voice behind him made him stop flipping the page midair.

“who are you?”

donghyuck swore he almost had a heart attack right there and then.

the voice continued. “i honestly don't think you're here to steal anything from this sad excuse of an apartment but i really don't appreciate strangers going through my stuff.”

donghyuck whipped around to face the newcomer. his roommate was almost two whole inches shorter than him, which he did not expect from the intimidating voice. he had mousy brown hair tucked under a beret, which donghyuck thought was quite fitting for an artist. he had his arms crossed over his slight frame, with a scowl on his face. donghyuck thought he looked scary for a second. if you ignored his height.  
“i-i’m your roommate..?” donghyuck winced at his stutter.

the boy rolled his eyes. “still doesn’t explain what you’re doing in my room.” he pointed at the door behind him. “that’s the empty room.”  
at this, donghyuck huffed and retorted, “well i just came and i didn't see any sign indicating it belonged to you.”

the boy’s expression faltered for a second and donghyuck couldn't tell if he was surprised at his response or offended. donghyuck thought the boy would snap back, but to his surprise, the boy smirked and offered his hand.

“i like your sass. the name’s huang renjun.”

donghyuck paused for a second as he felt a small smile of his own creep up his face. maybe he’d make friends after all. he grasped renjun’s small hand in a firm handshake.

“lee donghyuck.”

\---

as the semester started, renjun and donghyuck became fast friends, spending time together after classes, studying together and going for the occasional meal out (they were broke college students who had to make do with what they had). renjun majored in art (unsurprisingly) and donghyuck was a music major. since their majors were both related to the arts, most of their classes were in the same building. donghyuck had never warmed up to someone this quickly and he was grateful he had found such a great friend in renjun.

renjun also often ranted about his non-existent love life to donghyuck. in their sophomore year, he had met his boyfriend, na jaemin, who was also in their year, a photography major. jaemin was sweet and was really nice to donghyuck, who found himself with two friends now that renjun started dating jaemin. as sweet as jaemin was, he often found the two a little too sweet when they were with each other. donghyuck didn't appreciate being the third wheel, so he often left them with a laugh and joked about using protection (at which renjun would promptly throw a cushion at him) before leaving to themselves in his shared apartment with renjun. during these times, he’d spend time at the studios in the college, sometimes with seniors who were exceptionally fond of him (especially taeil and doyoung, although they may claim otherwise), other times alone. he’d get pointers and tips on how to improve his vocals, get higher scores on assignments, how to improve his musical arrangements. when he was alone, he’d often sing his heart out. it was the one thing he was passionate about since he was young other than studying.

on one of these days when renjun and jaemin were being too cuddly for their own good, donghyuck had grabbed his phone and keys while bidding them a quick goodbye. he stuck his tongue out at renjun who asked for takeout for the three of them and closed the door. he made a mental note to get renjun and jaemin’s favourite pizza, hawaiian, one with pineapples and one without (“how the fuck do you eat pineapples on pizza??” renjun had once asked jaemin. he had defended with, “it’s good, okay?” renjun rolled his eyes. “you’re crazy, you know that?” “crazy for you, baby.” jaemin said, with a wink. donghyuck threw renjun’s switch controller at him.)

donghyuck loved his two best friends, but he really should get a boyfriend soon.

\---

donghyuck quickened his pace as the system announced that his train would be arriving soon. a man who looked to be in his forties, dressed smartly and carrying a briefcase, brushed past him to get to the opposite platform. further ahead, he could see a young girl, no older than 10 years, being hugged by her mother as she sent her off to school. donghyuck's heart clenched slightly upon seeing the heartwarming incident amidst the crowd, but they disappeared from his line of sight as he managed to step into the train just as the doors opened. the carriage he happened to enter was right at the end of the train, so it did not have many people in it, but the rest of the train would soon be almost full with barely any breathing room. donghyuck quickly took one of the few empty seats left before commuters started to stream into the carriage.

as donghyuck plopped down onto a seat beside an elderly woman, the remaining train carriages were full within a matter of seconds. donghyuck thanked the heavens that his carriage wasn’t as full as the others. sure, all the seats were taken and there were quite a number of people standing, but at least he had his own space. as the train doors closed and the subway slowly started to move, donghyuck plugged in his earbuds and put his playlist on shuffle to drown out the surrounding noise. as “billie jean” started playing, he closed his eyes and let out a sigh. he couldn’t wait to get home and eat spaghetti. renjun was cooking today, and his spaghetti was the best. oh, how he wished this 30 minute-long train ride was over as soon as possible. heck, he already taste the carbonara sauce in his mouth-

donghyuck opened his eyes. his eyebrows furrowed and the lines on his face creased into a frown. he had felt somebody staring at him, and his gaze landed on the boy sitting across from him. he had messy black hair which was peeking out from under his cap (“who the hell wears a cap like that?” donghyuck thought to himself, horrified at the sight of his cap sitting precariously on top of his head). he had high cheekbones, which donghyuck had to admit was so fucking attractive. his round glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, in danger of slipping down. as soon as the boy saw that donghyuck had caught him staring, he quickly pushed his glasses back up his nose and looked away, at every other thing that wasn’t donghyuck, a blush creeping up his neck. donghyuck smirked. “cute,” he thought to himself. wait, what the fuck was he thinking? he just met this guy, for god’s sake. donghyuck shook his head and tried to think about something else. he had to admit though, the boy looked good, really good. “get a grip of yourself, donghyuck,” he berated himself internally.

he closed his eyes again and wondered if he’d ever seen him around. he didn't think so. maybe he could ask ten the next day. ten was in his senior year and one of the most informed people donghyuck knew at his college. he was sure to have the latest piece of news or gossip. he probably knew who this guy was too.

  
at some point, the boy left at the stop before his. donghyuck found himself unable to get the boy out of his mind. before he knew it, it was his stop and he was once again pushing himself through the crowd of commuters, blending in with everyone else.


End file.
